The ground-breaking film follows the blossoming relationship between skinhead Johnny and young entrepreneur Omar amid the soap bubbles of the wash house.

A surprise hit upon its release in 1986, it made a star out of Daniel Day-Lewis and was nominated for an Oscar the following year.

A theatrical adaptation followed in 2002, but Roger Parsley and Andy Graham's take on the culture-clash comedy never made it to London - until now.

Director Tim McArthur, who produced the duo's adaptation of EM Forster's Maurice to critical acclaim last year, believes the time is right for a revival.

"There are a lot of similarities to the period when the film was first released, with the huge cuts being made by the Tory-led government and the simmering ethnic tensions," he said.

"At the time I think people expected things to move on but if you look at homophobic crime in London it's actually increased. You have to ask whether that's due to better reporting or whether it's become accepted."

Kureishi has been closely involved with this adaptation. The writer met the cast, including Bombay Dreams' Royce Ullah, before the opening night and McArthur said he had been very supportive.

"He sent me a lovely text after we met saying he was looking forward to seeing it and would be happy as long as it was funny," says the director.

"He thought they romanticised the central relationship in the film and made it a bit fluffy when it could have had a harder edge."

McArthur has vague memories of watching the film aged 10 but has deliberately avoided revisiting it.

"It's not like Dirty Dancing, where people just want to see the film on stage. We wanted to tell our own story," he said.

"All I remember from the film are the bubbles and the iconic scene where Uncle Nasser and his mistress dance together in the laundrette while Omar and Johnny are having sex in the back room.

"The original stage version shifted the action forward 10 years to Blair's Britain and I think it would work in a modern setting.

"I wanted to give it the full 80s treatment though, because I think there's a certain glamour about the decade which we've lost."

My Beautiful Laundrette is at Above the Stag until April 10. Tickets £15, available at www.abovethestag.com or from the box office on 020 8932 4747.